


It Should Have Been Me

by Ambrose



Category: Romeo And Juliet - All Media Types, Romeo And Juliet - Shakespeare
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Someone Else Dies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-19
Updated: 2015-10-19
Packaged: 2018-04-26 19:37:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5017750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ambrose/pseuds/Ambrose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mercutio survives.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It Should Have Been Me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MercutioLives](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MercutioLives/gifts).



> Old tumblr prompt thing I'm cross-posting here for the sake of having everything in the same place.
> 
> Now coming with [art](http://thatdreamersoftenlie.tumblr.com/post/120504881355/hellooo-ambrose-bierce-i-hope-you-dont-mind-but-i) by [thatdreamersoftenlie](http://thatdreamersoftenlie.tumblr.com/).

Mercutio would never forgive himself.

 

Benvolio had cursed him, for provoking Tybalt, albeit in jest. Cursed him, cursed them all – and then he’d apologised. No matter how much Mercutio would tell him he was right, and how much he was sorry, Benvolio kept apologizing. It was fitting, somehow, that he would die like this. Trying to stop Romeo from getting between them, trying to warn him –  _they’re just playing_ , _Ro, let them_ , and was hit by accident in the mêlée that ensued. So like him. Benvolio who always fought for peace. Mercutio could not laugh at the irony.

“It’s just a scratch”, Mercutio had tried to reassure him, as well as himself. “You’ll be fine, we’ll get you patched up, Ben” but Benvolio died in his arms all the same, and there was no stopping Romeo, no telling him they were not fighting in earnest, no telling him it was all an accident, a stupid accident, for Romeo would not listen, he would revenge his cousin, just like there was no stopping him when he went after his Juliet.

And Mercutio, broken, holding his best friend’s corpse close to his heart, still hoping he could revive him, still hoping for  _anything_ , anything but that – Mercutio saw the light go out from Tybalt’s eyes as Romeo stabbed him.

 

His cousin had died; his best friend and his lover too; and Mercutio refused to leave the graveyard, to abandon them once more. Deaf to everyone’s comforting words – all of them who did nothing as they watched them die one by one, and then congratulated themselves when it was all over.

Mercutio refused to leave his friends’ side, feeling he belonged more to the world of the dead than the living.  _It should have been me._

Every day his uncle had him brought back to the palace before night time, every day he found his way back there. He would have slept on their tombs if he could. In truth he tried not to sleep at all; dreams of the best moments of his life always turning into blood-soaked nightmares made him dread the moment his eyes closed of their own accord. Sometimes he woke up in blissful ignorance, still smiling at a vision of someone’s smile, someone’s laugh, someone’s comforting arms – until memories rushed back and he was reminded. They were all dead, dead because of him, because he could not resist picking up stupid fights. And he broke in cold sweats, shivering, sobs racking his body, and no-one was there to hold him.


End file.
